Student Chapter

Monthly Archives: March 2013

After presenting their design of the new Cairo Expo City to the Egyptian Prime Minister, Zaha Hadid Architects were announced as the designers for the project in 2009. The Cairo Expo City, which is set to be completed in 2014, will feature a 450,000 square meter city that encompasses areas for conferences, hotels, offices, and shopping centers. Situated directly between central Cairo and its airport, the Expo City will meet the city’s high demand for international conferences and will be able to host a large variety of events.

The design of the Expo City was inspired by the topography of the Nile River. According to Zaha Hadid Architects, the “natural confluence patterns of the Nile delta inspire [their] proposal for an ‘exhibition and conference city’ for Cairo – with a central ‘river’ and extending ‘tributaries’ explored to define circulation and the nature of clustered buildings – each with its own mass, all relating to an overall vision.”

FRESHMEN & JUNIORS: We will be hosting a portfolio workshop next Friday, April 5th, at 6:30 p.m. in CDN 283. If you are applying to the milestone or trying to get an internship this summer, you do not want to miss this! All years are welcome.

The first week back to school from any break can be a tough one. Whether you’re having designer’s block or are needing a bit of motivation to get back to your studio routine, here are 29 tips to sharpen your creative groove.

Alexander Lervik, a product designer in Stockholm, has created a product that may soon appear in the homes of chocolate lovers everywhere.

Discovered on Design Milk, the Chocolate Lamp was created by Lervik when he conceived the concept of a light that did not give out any light at all. The lamp is completely dark when you turn it on. “It’s only when the heat from the lamp starts to melt the chocolate that the light starts to shine through. Alexander says: ‘It takes several minutes for the first rays of light to penetrate, mimicking light spreading along the horizon at sunrise.'”

As the lamp heats up, holes soon form and its light increases as the chocolate melts.

After about 15 minutes of heating, the chocolate lampshade is completely melted and then solidifies into chunks that can be eaten.

While it some might think it’s silly, Lervik believes it is rather noble and meaningful. “I find it poetic, with complete darkness at first and then a tiny ray of light penetrates the dark chocolate.” Others agree with him – he already has a manufacturer and is now looking for a chocolate supplier. To read more about the project, click here.

On March 2nd, we had the privilege of hosting a portfolio workshop, featuring a lecture by the talented viscom designer Kyle Larkin, along with Alpha Rho Chi. The event was geared toward freshmen preparing for their milestone portfolios as well as upperclassmen seeking employment opportunities this summer, or anyone wanting to expand their knowledge of graphic design in general. Various visual communication skills were covered such as appropriate fonts to use, pleasing composition sizes, as well as successful portfolio binding and printing techniques. Afterward, we held a question and answer session as well as an opportunity for mentors to meet with their mentees. Check out the photos below!

Erica Weimann using her portfolio as an example of how to organize pages.

Students listening to the question and answer session. Students from other disciplines attended our lecture as well.

Some of the senior interior design students in attendance were on hand to give advice as well.

The duo who helped put the Portfolio Workshop together: Morgan Flannery, the President of Alpa Rho Chi, and Erica Weimann, the Mentorship Executive of IIDA. Great job ladies!

All photos are courtesy of James Bailey. Thank you to everyone who attended the event and check back for another portfolio workshop coming soon!

On January 31st, we had the pleasure of attending the Phoenix Firm Crawl, which was organized by the IIDA Southwest Chapter. We began the day at 8:00 a.m. in Tempe where we all took the light rail together to get to Gensler, the first firm we met with at 9. After Gensler, we visited Smithgroup JJR and then took a lunch break at the delicious Corner Bakery Cafe. Our final stop was at Orcutt Winslow at 1 p.m. At each firm we met the designers, received a tour of the office, and had a chance to ask questions.

The firm crawl was very informative and also was a terrific networking opportunity for students who are looking for internships or other employment opportunities this summer. Check out photos below! All photos are courtesy of James Bailey.

The first photo of the day! This was taken right after we visited Gensler.

Heading back to the light rail!

After visiting Smithgroup JJR, we stopped at Corner Bakery Cafe for lunch. Yummm!

All smiles 🙂

Listening to a designer at Orcutt Winslow

Ending the tour of Orcutt Winslow in the firm’s fabulous elevator lobby. Within the walls, the designers hand-placed thousands of little plastic O’s and W’s for a personalized design statement.

The group at the end of the day. Thank you to everyone who attended, the firms that participated, as well as Danielle Hensley, the IIDA Southwest VP of Student Affairs who organized the event!

Ever wondered what the offices of Adobe Systems looked like? The company that brought us Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and much more has a new contemporary workplace in Utah just 30 miles south of Salt Lake City. The Adobe Campus, which opened in January 2013, encompasses 280,000 square feet of office space that includes a gym, basketball courts, ping pong & pool tables, as well as an organic cafe.

A digital artist created a typographic poster series called Tribute to Fonts that every designer should read. Graphic designer Moe Pike Soe also designed unique posters within the series to honor to his favorite typefaces.

All photos are courtesy of Behance.net. To see more images of the project, click here. Have a great week!

The third-year interior design students may find this particularly inspiring as they design community centers based on the historic Tempe Hardware building this semester.

Discovered on Trendland.com, this 99-foot tall building with a huge steel water tower was purchased in 2008 and transformed into a luxury home. The original brick of the building combined with the modern interiors and sleek additions resulted in a very successful historic renovation.

All photos courtesy of Trendland.com. Don’t forget to attend our portfolio workshop TONIGHT at 6:30 on the Bridge. See you there!